Ahead of its Hulu and digital release, we had the opportunity to speak to star Nell Tiger Free and director Arkasha Stevenson about their work in the epic film, The First Omen, that is considered by many the best horror film in years.
A young American woman is sent to Rome to begin a life of service to the church, but encounters a darkness that causes her to question her faith and uncovers a terrifying conspiracy that hopes to bring about the birth of evil incarnate.
Read and watch the full interview below:
THH: For Arkasha – The Omen is a film that released over 40 years ago, what inspired you to take on the challenge of creating a prequel to such an iconic film?
ARKASHA: You know, both of us actually grew up as big Omen fans and we both watched the movie, you know, when we were quite young. And so it’s a, you know, I have a lot of nostalgia when it comes to that film. And I think just being an Omen fan myself wondering, you know, you always wonder how did Damien come to be? Who gave birth to him? What happened there? And so the fact that this film answers those questions was just so exciting just as a viewer for myself. um and because it’s just such a iconic, um, franchise and it was, it was very humbling to be able to be part of that.
THH: For both – How scary was to shoot this film, because there are some terrifying scenes that we as a viewer get to experience but I bet that seeing it in person can still be scary even for the ones who are doing it.
NELL: Like we had some really funny, like there was this one moment where Bill Nighy’s character is is you know, coming away from me and I’m, I’m going into the darkness. But what really is happening is that Bill Nighy is on a little pulley device and he’s just, he’s being pulled silently away from me. And it was just the funniest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. And so it’s like moments like that where you are like, what are we doing? Why have we got Bill Nighy on a pulley device? And it’s just, it can be fantastically funny. It really can. There obviously were pretty intense moments, like when I had the bag over my head or, or things like that that were intense to shoot.
But most of the time we had a pretty good time. Yeah.
ARKASHA: And it’s good. You have to kind of… I think in order to make a horror film, you have to really enjoy the people you’re around and have a lot of trust. And I think with that comes a lot of… Love and fun. Yeah. A lot of giggling.
THH: For Nell – Margaret is a very complex character, she goes through a lot in this story and I wanted to ask you how did you prepare for the role, and what aspects of her character resonated with you the most?
NELL: I’m a bit cheeky. I don’t actually prepare, which is maybe something I should do. But I… I like to come in, you know, fresh and Margaret was a brand new character in the franchise and I wanted to find her with Kasia and so much of her was on the page, but there was lots to discover. I mean, little elements of me kind of crept in and, you know, Margaret’s clumsiness and her over gesticulation. Some of me crept into her, but yeah, I mean, I think I resonated with her so much and this story and it felt like it was going to be a fantastic challenge. And, you know, we’re always looking for that, us masochists. So yeah, but really it was kind of, I learned her as I went with Arkasha.
THH: For both – Both of you have experience in the horror genre. How did this background influence your approach to ‘THE FIRST OMEN’, and what unique challenges did this film present?
ARKASHA: Everything for me is horror. I don’t know. So it is hard to, I think my instincts just naturally gravitate towards making things dark. unfortunately, for my mental health. And, you know, what’s so fun is that like creating a horror film, you’re really creating, I think what’s really important is grounding the story in reality. And then within that, creating this atmosphere, like the atmosphere is also going to be a character. And that was something that, you know, just I got to work on Channel Zero, which was a huge learning experience for me.
THH: For Arkasha – I just have to ask you, how did you guys film that birthing scene, because every time I watch it it’s even more traumatizing. How did this idea came up? Was that always in the script?
ARKASHA: You know what, this is probably, it’s interesting because it’s a scene that doesn’t necessarily move the plot forward in a pivotal way, but it’s probably one of the more important scenes of the film just because I think it really encapsulates the thematics that were really important to us all and kind of the reason for making the film. Um, and so especially, you know, that, that one shot, um, so that it, when, and I, I work with a writing partner. So when my writing partner, Tim Smith and I came on board, that was actually the first scene that we thought about. And that was the image that we pitched to the studio. Um, and they were on board with it, which was magical and amazing. And then, and then now who, which it’s really interesting, just getting down to the nitty gritty of how we shot it, you know, That’s obviously a prosthetic. And one of the members of our makeup effects team is the hand. And then you have Nell’s side of everything. And Nell is not performing to anything. Like all of that is her on her own, not seeing those images. And you didn’t see those images until way after.
NELL: Arkasha is very good at describing things. (laughs)
THH: For Nell – Working with a cast that includes Ralph Ineson and Bill Nighy, what was the dynamic like on set, and how did it influence your performance? Especially in more tense full and terrifying scenes.
NELL: It was like, because we all had such lovely relationships and such a closeness, I promise you, every single person, crew and cast, it was just the most incredible company. And so, you know, I’d be doing a taxing scene and having Bill there to comfort me or Ralph there, you know, on camera. It was just a delight. It just meant that we could all push ourselves that much further because… you know, as well as always having Kasia there to catch us, we had each other too. So it was just a really lovely working environment it really really was.
ARKASHA: It was like disturbingly lovely like I know everybody says that, but it also, it just really wasn’t and you guys made my job so easy.
And there would just be like fun little moments where, I don’t know, there’s a, the scene where you and Bill are driving back from the airport and, um, there was some, some technical difficulty and and Nell and Bill were still in the car. And I was like, oh my gosh, they’ve been waiting in the car. Are they, they’re probably really upset. And I like tuned into my earphones and you guys were singing. You were singing a duet. And I was just like, oh, okay.
THH: For Arkasha – How was the process of choosing the lead actress for this role and why you think Nell was the perfect fit for it. I mean she was indeed the perfect choice for this role, truly a perfect performance.
ARKASHA: So I work with a creative partner, Tim. And, um, we, he was watching a sermon and he saw now and he goes, Margaret. That’s so cool. He, he just, he like “Margaret,” you know, like a caveman. And, and I was like, and then I of course would fell in love with you in that role. And, um, and then, and then we had this magical zoom where you like, you do not have to read for us, but you were so kind and you did. And Nell performed one of the more emotionally taxing, intense scenes over zoom for us. And it was so intense that i started crying, it was amazing you just knew you were so thoughtful and delightful. And there was just a lot of chemistry for me.
You can watch the FULL interview NOW available below!
The First Omen is NOW available on digital platforms.
